Disposable car cover

ABSTRACT

A disposal automobile cover for preventing foreign substances, dust and water from contacting an automobile disclosed and claimed. A disposable automobile cover adapted to be expanded between first and second positions, the cover comprising a planar top wall having an ovate perimeter; a planar side wall connected to the ovate perimeter at a first edge; and an elastic strip operatively associated with the side wall at a second edge thereof, the side wall being parallel to the top wall when in the first position, the side wall being transverse to the top wall when in the second position.

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

Applicant, Dennis L. Miller, a United States Citizen residing inBettendorf, Iowa claims priority under 35 U.S.C. §119(e) of provisionalU.S. Patent Application Ser. No. 60,903,913 filed on Feb. 28, 2007 whichis incorporated by reference herein.

FIELD OF THE DISCLOSURE

The present disclosure generally relates to automobile covers. Moreparticularly, the present disclosure relates to disposable automobilecovers.

STATEMENT REGARDING FEDERALLY SPONSORED RESEARCH OR DEVELOPMENT

No federal funds were used to develop or create the invention disclosedand described in the patent application.

REFERENCE TO SEQUENCE LISTING, A TABLE, OR A COMPUTER PROGRAM LISTINGCOMPACT DISK APPENDIX

Not Applicable

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

U.S. Pat. No. 6,793,090 issued to Ackerman et al. for “Elastic ContainerCover and Method for Manufacturing” teaches and claims an ovate-shapedcontainer cover includes one layer of cover material that substantiallycovers a container, while a second layer of cover material adapted withan elastic border for gripping the walls of a container is substantiallyadjacent to the walls of the container. The container cover, when placedatop a container, is capable of forming a dome. The preceding patent isincorporated by reference herein.

U.S. Pat. No. 7,051,895 issued to Toussant et al. for “ContainerCovering System” teaches and claims a container covering systemcomprising a flexible film cover including an elastic peripheralportion. The film cover forms a seal around a container on which thecovering system is placed. U.S. Pat. No. 6,276,551 issued to Miller, IIfor “Flexible cap for various drink containers” claims a novel drink capfor preventing foreign substances from entering an opening of a beveragecontainer, the drink cap comprising at least one flexible non-wettingsheet that has an outer surface, an inner surface, an edge portionlocated at the outermost periphery of the flexible sheet, a skirtportion located adjacent to the edge portion, an elastic peripheryregion located adjacent to the skirt portion, and a central web portion,whereby the central web portion of the inner surface of the at least oneflexible sheet covers the opening of the beverage container. Thepreceding patent is incorporated by reference herein.

U.S. Pat. No. 6,099,067 issued to Butterworth for a “Vehicle transportcover” discloses and claims a vehicle transport cover that protectivelyoverlays the painted exterior surfaces of a vehicle. The cover includesa base sheet made of a moisture-resistant material that overlays thevehicle. An elastic strip that circumferentially extends along thevehicle encircling bottom edge of the base sheet holds the vehicle coverin place and ensures a tight fit over the vehicle. Openings provided inthe base sheet and which overlay all of the vehicle windows are coveredby transparent window sheets that promote driver visibility. A zipperedslit is also provided in the cover along the base sheet region which isaligned over the driver-side door to allow easy access to and from thedriver seat when the cover is arranged over the vehicle. The precedingpatent is incorporated by reference herein.

U.S. Pat. No. 7,100,965 issued to Stover for a “Multi-section landvehicle cover” discloses and claims a cover having a plurality ofsections that can be attached to a land vehicle using anchor straps. Thesections of the cover are attached to each other using connectingstraps. The cover can be used when the land vehicle is in use. Thepreceding patent is incorporated by reference herein.

Automobile covers capable of covering automobiles of various sizes andshapes have been in use for many years. The prior art, however, has notdelivered a solution to the market which is easy to use, inexpensive topurchase and compact when not in use or while packaged. There exists aneed a disposable automobile cover which when not in use may be storedin the glove box of the automobile. There exists a need for a disposableautomobile cover which envelopes the automobile in low cost readilyavailable plastic material.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

In an embodiment of the invention, an automobile covering systemcomprises a flexible film cover including an elastic peripheral portion.The film cover is configured to form a seal around the automobile onwhich the covering system is placed. The automobile covering system asdescribed is preferably disposable and is produced with a dimension ofthirteen feet by eighteen feet. Generally, it has an oval type shape.The thickness of the film, without limitation, is preferably 0.5millimeters to 0.70 millimeters thick to reduce weight and bulk andencourage disposability. The cover protects against paint overspray,chemicals, sawdust, sprays, paint, rain and dirt.

In another embodiment of the invention, an automobile covering systemcomprises an automobile body and a flexible sheet or film cover. Theflexible sheet or film cover has an elastic peripheral portion and theflexible sheet or film cover is configured to seal the cover to theautomobile body when the cover is placed on the automobile body.

The automobile covering systems and methods of the present invention areadvantageous in that they may be used with a variety of different sizedautomobiles to provide an improved seal therewith.

In another embodiment of the present disclosure, a flexible sheet may beconstructed from a flexible non-wetting material such as a combinationof rubber and polyvinylchloride wherein the aforesaid material aresanitized to not mar or contaminate the automobile surface. The elasticperiphery region is constructed from an elastic cord secured to theflexible sheet by adhesive, heat bonding, or other like methods ofattachment. Attaching an elastic cord by heat bonding is sufficientlyset forth by U.S. Pat. No. 4,691,390 issued to McKeown. An alternateconstruction of the automobile covering can be prepared by knowntechniques such as set forth in U.S. Pat. No. 4,846,827 issued to Salleeet al. and assigned to the Kimberly-Clark Corporation.

Essentially, to economically and feasibly produce disposable automobilecovers they must be manufactured at high production rates usingtechniques such as invoking a “shirr” (an elasticized portion embeddedand inherent therein the periphery of the flexible sheet) upon theflexible sheet. Yet another alternate construction includes the flexiblesheet having two connected layers of which a first layer (not shown)provides the inner surface and comprises a plastic sheet and a secondlayer (not shown) provides the outer surface and comprises a decorativepaper sheet.

These and other aspects and features of the disclosure will become moreapparent from the following detailed description when taken inconjunction with the accompanying drawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 illustrates one embodiment of the automobile covering system ofthe present art as applied to a vehicle.

FIG. 2 illustrates a close-up side view of the automobile coveringsystem as applied to a vehicle.

FIG. 3 illustrates the general shape of the automobile covering systemfrom the top.

FIG. 4 illustrates a top view of the covering system being applied tothe automobile.

FIG. 5 illustrates the elastic portion of the covering system in an“un-stretched” state.

FIG. 6 illustrates the elastic portion of the covering system in a“stretched” state.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION - LISTING OF ELEMENTS Element Description ElementNumber Automobile 1 Peripheral portion 3 Elastic band 4 Film 5Automobile cover 10 Sealing portion 18 Adhesive element 30 Protectivecoating 40

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE DISCLOSURE

Referring now to the drawings and photos, and with specific reference toFIGS. 1-6, an automobile cover constructed in accordance with thepresent disclosure is generally referred to by reference numeral 10.Automobile covers 10 of the present disclosure can be used for coveringautomobiles 1. It is to be understood that the automobile cover 10 canbe used for transport, inclement weather and as a dust cover during bodyor paint work in a shop.

The automobile cover can be constructed from a variety of materials suchas any flexible plastic, cloth, rubber, paper, foil or the like. In anexemplary embodiment of the invention, the cover is constructed from asingle piece of translucent or preferably transparent thin-film materialsuch as, but not limited to, a polymer selected from the groupconsisting of polyethylenes (PE), polypropylenes (PP), polystyrenes(PS), polyvinyl chlorides (PVC), polyvinylidene chlorides (PVDC),polyvinyl acetates (PVAC), polyamides, including nylons, polyesters andmixtures thereof. Such a material provides a cover with the flexibilityand strength to cover and contain a variety of different sizedcontainers. The translucent or transparent nature of the automobilecover is advantageous to allow the vehicle to be visible without openingthe automobile covering system, but is not required. The preferredmaterial of construction should be selected for water and dustresistance, relative low weight and disposability.

FIG. 1 illustrates one embodiment of the automobile covering system ofthe present art. The cover comprises an elastic peripheral portion 3 andin one embodiment of the invention, a portion of the cover 10 isconfigured to contact and provide a “seal” around an automobile when thecover is placed on the automobile to cover it. As used herein, the term“seal” or “sealing” means that the contact provided between anautomobile cover 10 and an automobile 1 is substantially air and/orliquid impervious. For example, the contact provided between anautomobile cover 10 and an automobile 1 should be sufficient to preventsignificant liquid ingress during inclement weather.

In another embodiment of the invention, the elastic peripheral portion 3of the cover 10 is configured to contact and provide a seal around anautomobile 1 when the automobile cover is placed on the automobile.While in both embodiments it is desirable for the seal to formimmediately, in some cases it may be acceptable for the seal to formover time such as a seal that results from a gradual flow of sealing orgasketing material. Such a seal can be formed by any variety of“adhesive elements”. As used herein, the term “adhesive element(s)”means any composition, coating, material or the like capable ofproviding a seal such as, but not limited to glue, tape, double sidedtape or gasketing material such as a conformable and/or compressiblegasketing material.

In an exemplary embodiment of the invention, the elastic peripheralportion 3 comprises an elastic edge such as an elastic band 4, which haselastic properties including the ability to stretch and relax. FIG. 4depicts the automobile cover 10 in a relaxed state wherein the elasticperipheral portion 3 is unstretched. In contrast, FIG. 5 depicts thecover 10 in an unrelaxed state wherein the elastic peripheral portion 3is stretched so that the automobile cover 10 will fit over a variety ofdifferent sized automobiles and wherein the elastic peripheral portion 3will provide contact and preferably seal around substantially an entireouter surface of the automobile 10. While an air and/or liquid tightseal is preferred, there may be occasions when a user desires theenclosed automobile to be ventilated. This may be accomplished in anynumber of ways including puncturing the film 5 and/or interrupting theseal formed between the cover 10 and the automobile 1.

In a non-limiting embodiment of the invention, the cover 10, or aportion of the cover, is configured to provide a seal around anautomobile on which the covering system is placed. In this embodiment,the cover may comprise an adhesive element, such as an adhesive gluecoating that allows a portion of the cover to seal the container.Nonetheless, in an exemplary embodiment of the invention, it is theelastic peripheral portion 3 of the cover 10 that comprises the adhesiveelement for providing the seal around the vehicle on which the coveringsystem is placed. In other words, the elastic peripheral portion 3 of acover 10 is configured to form a seal around an automobile 1 to preventair and/or liquid from penetrating the automobile. For example, it iscontemplated an adhesive element of an elastic peripheral portion 3 maycomprise an adhesive coating, or some other application or attachment ofan adhesive to the elastic peripheral portion 3. The cover 10 or theelastic peripheral portion 3 of the cover having an adhesive element maybe formulated to be releaseably resealable to an automobile. The term“releasably resealable” includes the meaning that a cover 10 might becapable of a plurality of uses on the same automobile or on a differentautomobile having a different shape and/or different materialcharacteristics.

FIG. 3 illustrates the general shape of the automobile covering systemfrom the top. In the preferred embodiment, the automobile coveringsystem is produced with a general length of 18 feet and an exteriorwidth of 13 feet. To improve “fit” the cover has a unique oval shapethat incorporates a wide radius at all corners. As shown, the radius atthe corners is 18 inches. The interior width is 11 feet. This shaperesembles a squared oval having symmetrical features. Applicant hassound this shape improves cover to automobile fit thereby promoting aneffective seal to improve the automobile covers imperviousness to rain,dust, dirt and other foreign objects.

FIG. 4 shows how the automobile cover 10 may be applied by the user toallow engagement and enclosure of the automobile 1. Such application isgenerally carried out by the user grasping the automobile cover 10 withone hand at a first skirt portion and with the other hand grasping theautomobile cover at a second skirt portion thereafter the user movinghis or her hands opposite and outwardly to fully dilate the elasticperiphery region and engage the automobile 1. The automobile cover 10 isthen placed around the automobile 1 and the user then releases the firstand second skirt portions. The elastic periphery region, being intension around the periphery of the automobile, creates a snug fitwherein the elastic periphery region is in firm contact with theautomobile body.

Although not shown, one of ordinary skill will appreciate the outersurface of the flexible sheet 5 will support placement of a logo or auser's name. It should be readily understood by those skilled in the artthat one or more logos may be located on any surface of the automobilecover.

While the disclosure is susceptible to various modifications andalternative constructions, certain illustrative embodiments thereof havebeen shown in the drawings and pictures will be described below indetail. It should be understood, however, that there is no intention tolimit the disclosure to the specific forms disclosed, but on thecontrary, the intention is to cover all modifications, alternativeconstructions, and equivalents falling within the spirit and scope ofthe disclosure as defined by the appended claims.

1. An automobile covering system comprising: a flexible film coverincluding an elastic peripheral portion and a sealing portion, whereinthe sealing portion is capable of sealing the film cover to anautomobile body when the elastic peripheral portion is disposed aboutthe automobile body, wherein the elastic peripheral portion of the filmcover has an adhesive element disposed thereon and wherein upon contactof the elastic peripheral portion to the automobile body, the elasticperipheral portion is capable of forming a seal thereto, wherein theadhesive element is provided with a protective cover, wherein theprotective cover for the adhesive element comprises a loop stitchingconfigured to cover at least about 50% of the adhesive element.
 2. Theautomobile covering system of claim 1, wherein the adhesive element isinactive when the elastic peripheral portion is in a relaxed state. 3.The automobile covering system of claim 1, wherein the adhesive elementis exposed upon stretching of the elastic peripheral portion.
 4. Theautomobile covering system of claim 1, wherein the elastic peripheralportion is provided with a protective coating to prevent adhesivecontact of the adhesive element with a surface when the elasticperipheral portion is in a relaxed state.
 5. The automobile coveringsystem of claim 1, wherein the adhesive element is a pressure sensitiveadhesive.
 6. The automobile covering system of claim 1, wherein theelastic peripheral portion is contoured elastic.
 7. The automobilecovering system of claim 1, wherein the elastic peripheral portioncomprises a compressible or conformable material.
 8. The automobilecovering system of claim 7, wherein the compressible or conformablematerial is foamed elastic.
 9. The automobile covering system of claim1, wherein the seal is substantially liquid impervious.
 10. Theautomobile covering system of claim 1, wherein the elastic peripheralportion forms a releasable seal around the automobile.
 11. Theautomobile covering system of claim 1, wherein the sealing portion hasan adhesive element-disposed thereon, wherein said adhesive elementseals the film cover to the automobile body.